Galaxy Note vs. iPod touch vs. Galaxy Player: specs showdown

After about four years of being the only product of its kind, the iPod touch finally has some competition. Apple’s rival (and copycat?) Samsung has issued several media players which serve a similar purpose to the touch. The Samsung Galaxy Player, which comes in four inch and five inch models, is the direct answer to the Apple’s media player; while the Galaxy Note offers something a little different. How do the specs of these new additions compare to the iPod touch?

Design and Dimensions

Whether you agree with Apple’s lawyers or not, you have to admit that Samsung’s two media players have a similar look to Apple’s. The most obvious difference would be the considerably larger size of the Galaxy devices. These gizmos–particularly the Note–are blurring the line between smartphone and tablet.

The iPod touch is Apple’s thinnest iOS device, and it’s also much thinner than the new Samsung players. If maximum portability is your priority, then the touch is the way to go. Even the smaller Galaxy Player 4.0 (not pictured) is 3.79mm thicker than the touch.

Weight

As you would expect from the size, the iPod touch is easily the lightest of the three. The only surprise here is that the larger Galaxy Note is actually a pinch lighter than the Galaxy Player 5.0. Considering that it has a 3G radio inside, this is especially impressive (or unimpressive for the Galaxy Player).

Display

As we’re looking at different form factors here, it’s natural that we have different display sizes. Of the larger displays, the Galaxy Note is far superior to the Galaxy Player. The 800×480 resolution, and 187ppi make the Galaxy Player’s display a major weakness next to the other two devices.

The iPod touch has what Apple markets as the Retina display with a stellar 330ppi. However, as it isn’t an IPS display your viewing angles won’t be as wide as they are on the iPhone 4/4S.

The Galaxy Note’s Super AMOLED screen will display the blackest blacks and highest saturation of the bunch, though text and images won’t be as razor-sharp as they are on the touch.

Processor

The Note is the clear winner here, with the only dual core processor of the three. This was the first year that Apple didn’t update the iPod touch alongside the iPhone, so it’s stuck on 2010’s A4 chip. You can expect gaming capabilities to be similar to that in the iPhone 4, but no better.

RAM

Here’s another category where the lack of a 2011 iPod touch update gives it outdated specs. 256MB of RAM is unheard of in current generation smartphones, but that’s what the touch is rocking. The Note comes out on top again, with a full gig, and the Galaxy Players offers a decent 512MB.

Storage

The iPod touch offers several price tiers for internal storage, but with no SD card slot. The Samsung devices both have SD card slots, along with less options for flash memory.

Battery Life

As Samsung hasn’t released estimated uptime for the Note, we have inconsistent stats here. Of the two that we can compare, the Galaxy Player 5.0 comes out a little bit ahead of the iPod touch.

Cameras

Here you have two crappy cameras, and one very good camera. Apple threw the same cheap camera into the iPod touch that they did in the iPad 2. It’s a camera, alright–and that’s about all you can say about it. The Galaxy Player’s shooter is better, but still nothing stellar.

Meanwhile, the Galaxy Note has an 8MP shooter that can take 1080p video. There are other factors that can determine image quality (aperture, etc.), but these basic specs are top-of-the-line for a mobile device.

Intangibles

In the realm of extra perks, the iPod touch has the enormous benefit of the iOS App Store. It still has more apps and more quality games than Android. It also has iOS 5, iTunes, and iCloud. Despite its weaknesses in other categories, this combination of Apple features will be the deciding “spec” for a majority of customers.

The Galaxy Player doesn’t have a lot to offer in intangibles. It does have the Android Market, and those who prefer it over iOS will consequently pick it ahead of the iPod touch. But it’s still a stretch to call having the Market a clear overall advantage for the Galaxy Player, as the Note has it as well.

The Galaxy Note takes a page from the HTC Flyer’s book and offers stylus capabilities. This is intended to increase the Note’s appeal to business customers. When combined with its form factor, it harkens back to the era of PDAs. The stylus is included with the device, and slips into a hole for storage (much like on a Nintendo DS).

With that said, I’m not sure if many customers have a burning desire for a modern day Palm Pilot. On last check, the Flyer wasn’t exactly flying off of shelves. Perhaps the attention garnered from the Note’s Super Bowl commercial will help to generate interest.

Summing up

The Galaxy Note is the clear specs victor in most categories, but you will also pay for it. When it releases on Feburary 19, it will cost $300 with a new two-year contract. For a device that is too big to carry in most pockets, that’s a hefty price tag. Will customers want to throw down that much for a “phablet” when they may already have a phone and a tablet?

The iPod touch is probably the best buy of the bunch, at $200 for 8GB. The Galaxy Player 5.0 with the same amount of storage costs $270. The smaller 4.0 model is also more expensive than the touch at $230.

You could easily make the case that the Note isn’t in the same category as these devices, and we wouldn’t argue. The Galaxy Players are an explicit attempt to compete with the iPod touch, and are to the Galaxy S line what the iPod touch is to the iPhone. The Note, on the other hand, is an attempt to create a new category in between phones and tablets (much like the Dell Streak tried to do once upon a time).

If you’re simply looking for a portable media player and game system for a child, then you will certainly want either the iPod touch or the Galaxy Player. Beyond that, your decision may depend on whether you (or your child) prefer iOS or Android. Neither will play the latest dual-core optimized games flawlessly, but both will play Angry Birds and Cut the Rope with no issues. That will be enough for most parents.

This review is terrible. Its 2 mp3 players vs a Smartphone. And the Galaxy Player is much better than the ipod touch, this reviewer is clearly an apple fanboy to say the ipod and the App Store are better than the Player and Android Market.